Of Dragons and Damsels
by Rae Roberts
Summary: Dragons provide Charlie Weasley with all the adventure and companionship he's ever wanted. Then his daily routine is disrupted by a damsel in distress. What's a reluctant knight errant to do ?
1. Damsel in Distress

Disclaimer and author's notes: I don't claim to own any copyrighted material. This story is set in 1996. Currently updating to make it HBP-compliant. Charlie Weasley is the only canon character involved. Thanks for reading.

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Of Dragons and Damsels by Rae Roberts

Charlie Weasley filled a thermos with hot tea, tucked his sleeping bag under his arm, and stepped out into the winter twilight. Snow crunched beneath his feet as he made his way up the mountain path to the first paddock. The first stars of the evening twinkled overhead, impossibly bright. _Going to be a cold night,_ Charlie thought. _If I had any sense I'd be inside right now._ He grinned, knowing there would be no way he would miss this. After almost four years of working with dragons, he'd developed a kind of sixth sense about the creatures. He'd known that afternoon that the Hungarian Horntail would lay her eggs very soon, probably before morning. _I'll be there, if she needs me, _he thought, knowing how ludicrous it was. Charlie let out a soft laugh._ If I get within forty feet of Honey right now, she'll fry me. _

A soft popping sound caught his attention as he rounded the side of the hill. From the dragon's cave came a disgruntled rumble. Charlie stopped and cocked his head, listening, but the Horntail had quieted almost instantly. As he reached the paddock, he frowned and squinted through the deepening gloom. _What the heck— _There were two pillars set up in front of the entrance to the cave, an effigy of some sort suspended between them. Charlie immediately thought of Istvan. His fellow dragon keeper was notorious for his practical jokes. _This is not a good time, Istvan... what's that supposed to be, a virgin sacrifice ? That isn't funny..._

_That's not a practical joke, either. _It became clear as he made his way cautiously forward. Someone had raised a pair of stone pillars in front of the cave and chained a naked woman to them. Charlie's first reaction was outrage. _What kind of sick bastard would do a thing like that ? Only an idiot would do anything to upset a female dragon when she's about to lay eggs ! If anything happens to Honey... _

_Hell of a rotten thing to do to a human, too, I suppose. _

Charlie set his thermos and sleeping bag down and drew his wand. The woman was chained with her back to him, less than twenty feet from the entrance to the Horntail's cave. He tiptoed forward, careful not to make the slightest noise. From two feet away, he could hear the woman's breathing, a rapid, stifled panting. _She's terrified. Not that I blame her, really, under the circumstances._ Charlie stepped close, quickly putting a large, callused hand over her mouth. She startled, her body stiffening, jerking at the chains. "Shh, don't make a sound," he breathed into her ear. "It's going to be okay," he reassured the captive woman, "I'll have you out of this in no time." She nodded tensely, eyes wide. Charlie removed his hand and aimed his wand at the shackle around her right wrist. "_Alohomora,"_ he whispered.

Instead of popping open, the shackle tightened. The woman winced in pain but stayed silent. _They're cursed, _Charlie realized. _Bet you a hundred galleons Bill could have the curse off in thirty seconds._ He abandoned that line of thought; his older brother was in England, too far away to do the woman any good. Charlie turned his attention to where the chains were bolted to the stone pillars, and tried another spell. There was an audible clink of metal as all four chains tightened. From within the cave, the Horntail stirred restlessly. The woman glared at him. "Sorry," Charlie breathed.

"Can't you just _Stupefy_ it, or put it to sleep or something ?" she hissed, rolling her eyes toward the dragon's lair, her voice strained.

Charlie frowned. _She's on the verge of hysterics. _"By myself ? Sorry, but no way." _And there's no time to get enough fellows here to help with that... _He cast a nervous glance over his shoulder at the entrance to the cave. He could hear Honey's breathing, slow and calm... for the moment. _Thank Merlin._ "Listen," he told the captive, "she's really grouchy right now. Unless you have any bright ideas to contribute, just stay quiet and let me think about how to handle this." His mind was racing as he tried to come up with a plan. _Can't levitate her out of here, those pillars are too heavy... how did she end up like this in the first place ? _He leaned closer to examine the shackles around her wrists. She was shaking violently. "Er, could you try not to do that ? It isn't helping matters." The woman glared harder. Charlie muttered a few choice words to himself. _ If looks could kill..._

"Well excuse _me_," she whispered. "It just so happens that I'm freezing ! So sorry to inconvenience you."

Charlie blushed, feeling stupid. _Well, yeah, she is naked. And it is cold out here._ "_Accio _blankets" Within moments, several tattered woolen blankets flew through the air. He caught them, silently praying that the motion wouldn't disturb the dragon. He could sense the Horntail's growing discomfort. Awkwardly, he draped the blankets over the woman and muttered a sticking charm or two to keep them in place. "Okay, I've got an idea." Taking a deep breath, he cast the largest, strongest shield charm he could manage across the opening of the Horntail's cave. Charlie risked a glance inside and caught a glimpse of Honey's long spiked tail, coiling tighter around her body as she shifted restlessly.

"What are you going to do ? Will that shield hold ?"

"Shh ! _Accio _broom" His favorite broom, a Nimbus 2000 he'd saved nearly a year for, suddenly flew across the paddock. Charlie felt a bit more confident with it in his hand. "I'm going to blow those shackles off with the Reductor curse," he informed the woman. "Then we'll fly like a bat out of hell, out of range of Honey's flames."

"Can you blow them all off at once ?" Her eyes were huge, her voice trembling.

"Um, no. I don't think so. And in answer to your earlier question, no, I doubt the shield will hold for very long."

"_Great." _She managed to convey a world of sarcasm in that one whispered syllable. "Thanks for the reassurance."

"Unless you have a better idea ?" Charlie didn't wait for a reply. "_Reducto !" _The shackle binding her wrist shattered, the chain connected to it dropping to the stony ground with a clank. The other three chains tightened again, but neither noticed. A pair of huge yellow eyes glared balefully from behind the shield. Charlie heard a low, shuddering bass note; the dragon was stoking her internal furnace, preparing to breathe fire. "_Reducto !"_ The second wrist shackle burst apart. A loud roar sounded from the cave and a gout of fire burst from the opening, splashing against the shield charm like molten lava.

"Hurry up, _hurry up !_" The big black dragon was screaming and snarling in rage, throwing herself against the blocked entrance of the cave, flames shooting in spurts from her open mouth.

"_Reducto ! Reducto !"_ The ankle chains fell away. Charlie mounted his broom, the woman grabbing for him as he did so, clawing at the front of his coat. He threw her roughly across the handle and rose into the air just as the furious Horntail broke through the shield. The heat from her flames suddenly warmed the air around them. _Thank Merlin for the Nimbus' fast acceleration. _They'd gotten enough space between them and the Horntail to keep from being burned._  
_

They flew across the paddock, down the side of the mountain and into the little clearing in front of Charlie's cave. He brought the broom to a halt and hopped off, putting out an arm to steady the woman as she struggled to her feet, gripping the blankets around her. He grinned at her. "Not so bad for a hasty plan, now, was it ?" She opened her mouth to answer—_probably going to make another snarky remark,_ Charlie thought—then suddenly collapsed bonelessly in a dead faint. With a Seeker's reflexes, Charlie managed to catch her before she hit the snowy ground. He sighed. _I just knew she was going to have hysterics sooner or later. _


	2. Morning

Charlie slung the unconscious woman over his shoulder and carried her toward the rocky cliff. He touched a protruding clump of limestone and a section of the cliff swung inward, then closed seamlessly behind them once they'd entered. Charlie dropped his burden unceremoniously onto his bed. He took a moment to hang his Nimbus 2000 on the broom rack with care, then returned his attention to the problem at hand. The torches on the walls of the cave burned brighter as he bent to check the woman's feet. _No frostbite... she couldn't have been out there much more than an hour. Whoever did this to her did it after I'd finished my afternoon rounds._ The young woman's ankles were raw where the cursed shackles had bitten cruelly into her flesh. Charlie tutted disapprovingly and lifted one limp, cold hand. Her wrists were abraded as well, but her pulse was strong. He pulled a well-stocked first-aid kit from a niche carved into the stone wall and selected several small bottles.

"Argh." She groaned incoherently as Charlie lifted her to a sitting position. He literally poured the potions down her throat before she'd fully regained consciousness. "Ugh, what is that stuff ?" she protested, coughing and sputtering.

"Give 'em a moment or two. The first one will restore your strength," he told her cheerfully, "and the second one will put you back to sleep."

"Hey, don't be so pushy ! You've got a lot of nerve. What if I don't want to slee—"

Her eyelids fluttered closed and she slumped limp in his arms. Charlie let out a sigh of relief and eased her back onto the pillow. He turned his attention to applying a healing salve to her wrists and ankles. _Who the heck is this woman... and how the heck did she wind up chained in Honey's paddock ? _He surveyed his unexpected, unwanted guest with exasperation. _And now she's naked, in my bed. _Charlie couldn't help it; his eyes lingered on her body. _Not a bad body, though. Not bad at all... _Her legs were long and shapely, her skin tanned. _No tan lines... some sort of spell, maybe ? _He shook his head. _You dolt ! It's the middle of winter. That's just her natural complexion. _The woman's hair was dark and straight, falling below her shoulders, half-covering her breasts. Charlie tore his eyes away. _Mum raised you better than that. Don't stare. She's been through a terrible ordeal. _He grinned, remembering the sarcastic comments she'd made earlier. _And I'll bet she'd have a few choice words to say if she caught me ogling her_, he thought ruefully. "_Accio clothes."_ He stuffed her limp, unprotesting limbs into a sweatshirt and pants. Finally Charlie pulled the covers up to her chin, stoked the fire, and dimmed the torches. He grabbed his broom from the rack on the wall and cautiously left the cave.

_That popping noise I heard earlier was someone disapparating,_ he thought. _They're probably long gone by now. _Just to be safe, he locked the hidden door securely, then cast a disillusionment charm on himself before mounting his broom for a full reconnaissance of the three paddocks. The two Romanian Longhorns were sleeping peacefully in their caves, puffs of smoke drifting out as they snored. There didn't seem to be any sign of intruders lingering in the area. Honey the Hungarian Horntail was pacing restlessly around the two stone pillars. Charlie eyed them with distaste. _I'll get rid of those in a few days, once she's laid her eggs and calmed down a bit. _"It's going to be okay, girl, not long now," he encouraged her from his broom, a safe fifty feet above her. She rolled a golden eye his way, then, seeing nothing out of the ordinary, turned and resumed her pacing. Charlie swooped down and retrieved the gear he'd dropped earlier. Ascending to a ledge above Honey's cave, he climbed inside the thick purple sleeping bag and settled in to watch over the big black dragon.

———————

The pale winter sun was just rising above the horizon as Charlie flew back to his cave. _Ten beautiful eggs,_ he thought exultantly. He'd left Honey contentedly sitting on her nest, none the worse for wear after last night's upset. He unlocked the concealed door, slipped inside and hung his broom in its place on the wall. Stretching cramped muscles and yawning, he turned toward the tiny kitchen alcove, intending to brew a fresh pot of tea. A soft sound made him turn abruptly. _Oh, yeah. Her. I almost forgot. _

The woman was sitting up in his bed, staring at him wide-eyed. "W-who the hell are you ?"

"Charlie Weasley. I'm the bloke that rescued you last night," he pointed out.

She seemed to shrink in on herself, burying her face in her hands. "Oh Merlin ! He left me there... I never thought he'd really go through with it..."

The young wizard watched her stifle her sobs with his pillow, feeling helpless. Finally he retraced his steps to the stove. _Tea,_ he decided firmly. He did his best to ignore the woman while he fixed two steaming mugs of tea and set them on the small wooden table. Wiping her eyes on the sleeve of his sweatshirt, the woman joined him. He was relieved to see that she'd managed to regain some control.

There was a long silence as they sipped their tea. The woman seemed lost in thought for a time, staring into her mug. Finally she looked up and their eyes met across the little table. "Um," Charlie began. "Er..." _Dolt,_ he berated himself._ It isn't as though you've never spoken to an attractive woman before. Why, you had a date just this past June._ "I'm Charlie," he re-introduced himself, "and your name is ?"

"Nadia. Nadia, um... Smith. Um... I suppose I should thank you. For saving my life."

"It was nothing."

"Good-looking and modest too," she quipped. "All in a day's work for you, I suppose, rescuing damsels in distress."

"Er, not really." Charlie could feel his cheeks heat up. "Usually, I'm on the dragon's side," he told her.

Nadia shuddered. "That isn't funny !" She gripped her mug in both hands, clinging to the chipped ironstone as though it could protect her from the memory of her ordeal.

"Do you want to tell me how you ended up...er—" _Chained in front of my dragon's cave ? _He didn't finish the thought aloud. It didn't seem very diplomatic to ask.

"It's a long story." Nadia's eyes roamed around the cave. "You wouldn't have any place where I could, you know, freshen up a bit ?" she asked skeptically.

Charlie grinned. His home was spartan, but it was comfortable enough, at least to his standards. But the bathroom, now that was another matter entirely. He led Nadia to the back of the cave where a curtain covered a narrow opening in the rock. "Right through here." He pulled the curtain aside with a flourish.

The spacious cavern was dimly lit by sunlight filtering down through a skylight in the ceiling. A pool of water rippled enticingly, wisps of steam rising from the surface. Huge quartz crystals set into the rim of the nearly-circular pool lit up with a soft glow from within when Charlie murmured a lighting charm. His grin widened at Nadia's reaction; her jaw had dropped. "It's beautiful," she breathed. She stepped closer, running a hand over one of the crystals. "Um, no offense, but it smells kind of funny. Not bad," she hastened to assure him, "just... funny."

"It's a natural hot spring," he informed her. "The water has a high mineral content. Muggles actually come from all over to soak in the stuff, downriver at Olanesti."

"It's lovely." She raised an eyebrow. "Is it too much to hope that you have a loo ? Or is there an outhouse, up on a cliff somewhere ?"

His face burned again, the blush that he hated so much. "Right around there." Behind an outcropping of stone was a tiny porcelain sink, stained with rust. A cloudy mirror hung above it, and to one side, on the sandy floor of the cave, sat a chamber pot. Nadia's gaze took in the primitive facilities and her eyebrow raised even higher. "It's magically self-emptying, the chamber pot, I mean," Charlie offered, feeling defensive. She gave him a level look. "Um, I'll just leave you to it, then." He turned and fled back to the main room.


	3. Challenge

_I'll just leave you to it? Ah, I'm an idiot! _Charlie stalked across the cave's main room, mentally berating himself. _Maybe I should take some time off, spend a bit of time among human beings... before I lose all my social skills._ He turned to the little kitchen alcove and began making breakfast for two. Nadia was still in the bathroom when he finished cooking. _High maintenance, _Charlie decided, using the term he'd heard his brothers Fred and George use to describe Bill's latest girlfriend. _Nadia um...Smith. That was convincing,_ he thought sarcastically. _Smith. _ _Does she really expect me to believe that's her real name? _ _Ha. I don't trust her one bit. _Nadia chose that moment to emerge from behind the curtain, still dressed in his sweatpants and shirt. Charlie was reminded abruptly that she didn't have a wand; otherwise she would have undoubtedly conjured herself some more appropriate clothing. Her hair was damp and she'd clearly spent some more time crying. He felt a flash of guilt for the thoughts he'd been entertaining about her. _Poor kid's been through a lot, _he thought. "Breakfast is served," he said cheerfully, quickly casting a warming charm over the two plates.

"I'm really not hungry," Nadia protested. Still, she slid into the chair Charlie held out for her.

"I reckon the first thing we'd better do after breakfast is try and contact the Aurors," he suggested after several minutes of watching her rearrange the food on her plate without actually eating any of it.

Nadia looked up, her eyes widening as they met his. "No!" she said sharply. "I don't want the police involved."

"That was attempted murder," Charlie protested. "Not to mention trespassing and interfering with a nesting mother... the Hungarian Horntail's a protected species, you know."

"I don't believe this. You're more concerned about the dragon! That monster tried to kill me!"

"No, whoever chained you up in Honey's paddock tried to kill you. The dragon was just acting on maternal instinct, to protect her eggs," Charlie said reasonably. "Anyway, don't you want to press charges against... whoever it was ?"

"My...boyfriend," Nadia said in a very small voice. "I suppose I should say, ex-boyfriend," she added wryly.

_I've heard of bad break-ups, _Charlie thought,_ but that's... that's insane. _

"Don't look at me like that. Things were great when we first started dating," Nadia said defensively. "I suppose I should have realized..." her voice trailed off.

"He was an abuser, wasn't he ?" Charlie was surprised by the anger he felt. _I hardly know this girl._

Nadia shrugged. "You might say that. He swore he'd kill me if I didn't... Well, I never thought he'd go that far. It's better if I just go," she said abruptly, rising to her feet. "If he thinks I'm dead..." She stepped to the fireplace and reached for the container of floo powder. "Anyway, thank you for everything, really—" She stopped, frowning, fingers in the floo powder box. "It's empty!"

"Um, yeah." It had been years since Charlie had blushed so much. "Istvan, well, he's a bit of a joker," he explained. "He, um, replaced my floo powder with Exploding Snap powder."

"That isn't funny. If anyone had thrown the snap powder into the flames, they could have been badly hurt." Charlie could feel his face turning even redder. "You didn't..."

"Just a couple of fingers," he muttered under his breath.

"I don't believe this. And you haven't replaced the floo powder? When did this happen?"

"Er, a while ago," Charlie said evasively. "I, um, was going to get around to it..." Nadia shook her head and gave an exasperated sigh, but he could see she was trying hard not to laugh. _Well, at least I've managed to cheer her up a bit..._

She set the empty box back on the stone mantelpiece. "Could you set up a portkey for me, maybe? Just to get me back to civilization?"

"Sorry." He shook his head. "There's a portkey to Bucharest down at Smitty's, but it's for emergencies only. You don't want the authorities involved, right?" Nadia shook her head decisively. "And setting up an unauthorized portkey would guarantee Magical Law Enforcement—"

"Where are we, anyway?" she interrupted.

"This is the Romanian Dragon Preserve. I'm one of only five full-time dragon keepers," Charlie told her proudly.

Nadia slumped into one of the overstuffed chairs pulled up in front of the fireplace. "Merlin's _beard_. You weren't kidding when you said you were on the dragons' side." Her next words were whispered so softly Charlie could hardly hear them. "I hate dragons."

She seemed less than enthusiastic about his chosen career. Mentally, he shrugged. _Most people react that way._ Charlie turned and levitated the dirty dishes off the table. When he turned back, Nadia had brightened again.

"You said there were five of you. Couldn't I floo from one of the other keeper's, um, caves?"

"Sure, if you could get to them. The Dragon Preserve is a pretty big place. Istvan is the closest, and he's about sixty miles west of here." He waited for her to ask him to side-along apparate her there. To Charlie's relief, Nadia didn't even mention the possibility. _She probably thinks I couldn't manage it without splinching one or both of us_, he thought. Well, he wasn't about to disabuse her of that notion. Splinching was actually more of a possibility than he cared to admit.

Nadia was smiling over his mention of the other keeper's name. "Istvan... he'd be the pyromaniac practical joker?"

Charlie grinned. "Ah, he's not so bad. My twin brothers are worse, believe it or not."

Again, she seemed to be trying hard not to laugh. "I don't suppose you could send him an owl?"

"Sorry. I sent Spike to deliver a letter to England yesterday. He won't be back until Wednesday." Now she was laughing openly. Charlie noticed she had a gap between her front teeth. It was endearing, somehow. _If she was high-maintenance, she'd have had her teeth straightened, _he reasoned. "I'm afraid you're stuck here for a couple of days," he told her, grinning. Her laughter was contagious.

Nadia grinned back. "Until the vicious and terrifying Spike returns."

"Spike's not vicious at all," Charlie said, baffled. "Whatever gave you that idea? He's quite gentle, actually." _Merlin's beard. I hope she isn't afraid of owls too. _

——————

Charlie woke with a start. He hadn't meant to doze off, but sitting up all night guarding Honey must have made him sleepy. To his relief, Nadia had also fallen asleep, curled sideways in the chair across from him with her long legs tucked awkwardly underneath her. _I should check on the dragons,_ he thought. He rose without a sound and pulled on his coat and boots. At the door, Charlie paused a moment. He glanced over his shoulder at the sleeping woman, then, feeling slightly guilty, pulled out his wand and murmured the words to activate the anti-theft charms on the rack of brooms. Silently, he slid open the door and left the cave to make his morning rounds.

When he returned, Nadia was awake and busy in the kitchen alcove. "I made some sandwiches," she offered. "It was the best I could manage, without magic. And I made a fresh pot of tea." She looked away, busying herself with the kettle. "I, um, thought you might like something to warm you up when you got back."

"Brilliant. Thanks."

"No, I should thank you. You saved my life."

"You already thanked me. Anyway, it was my pleasure," Charlie said modestly.

Nadia grinned. "You're cute when you blush."

He felt his cheeks redden even more under her scrutiny. Thankfully, she turned her attentions to the plate of sandwiches. After they ate, Nadia moved across the room to the broom collection. Charlie watched as she ran her fingers lightly over each broomstick in turn.

"Vintage 1929 Silver Arrow," she remarked. "Beautiful broom. It must have cost a fortune."

"Not that one." Charlie shook his head, impressed that she recognized the model. "I bought it in a second-hand shop. Restored it myself," he added with a touch of pride. "It needed a completely new Braking Charm, took me about a month to get it right."

"It's beautiful," Nadia repeated. "Hey, why don't you loan me one of these ? I could fly out of here tonight."

"No way. You're not familiar with the mountains. If you got lost, without magic—"

"I can handle it."

"No," he repeated stubbornly.

"You don't trust me," she said shrewdly.

Charlie willed himself not to blush. "You're right. I don't. Sorry," he added.

"Come on. This old Comet 360 isn't worth much. I give you my word that I'll return it to you, but even if I don't, you're out, what, fifteen galleons or so? Small price to pay to get me out of your hair."

"It just so happens that I won my school's quidditch cup on that old Comet."

"You were captain of your team? Me too! I had a Cleansweep Five," Nadia beamed.

"You didn't attend Hogwarts," Charlie hazarded. "You're about my age. I would have remembered you."

"My mother was originally from Ecuador," Nadia explained. "My folks divorced when I was ten. Mom didn't trust the British school system. She sent me to an all-girls school of witchcraft back in Ecuador. So, what position did you play?" she asked before Charlie could comment.

"Seeker. And you?"

"Ah, wimpy little Seeker. I was a _real _quidditch player. Beater."

"Wimpy, eh? I'll make you eat those words... Smith."

"Yeah, you wish, Weasley. Care for a little game of one on one?"

"You're on. And I'll even let you use the Nimbus."


	4. A Spot of Quidditch

Charlie tossed Nadia the Nimbus 2000. Grabbing his coat and broom, he started for the door. "Hold on a minute," she protested, laughing. "Are you forgetting that I don't have any proper clothes? Or are you just trying to even the odds?"

"Um..." _You'd think my face would eventually get tired of all this blushing and give it a rest,_ he thought. Charlie hastily turned away and began pulling clothes from the wardrobe at random. "Put these on and I'll transfigure them to fit," he offered, thrusting a pile of winter garments at her. "Er, I'll just wait outside."

Nadia's eyes sparkled with suppressed mirth. "Thanks, Charlie." He paced in front of the blank cliff wall until she shuffled through the concealed door, dressed in an ill-fitting assortment of his clothes—baggy jeans, oversize boots, a puffy winter jacket. "How do I look?" Nadia struck a pose.

"Great. I especially like the boots on you. Very fetching."

"Yeah, they're only about four sizes too large." Screwing up his face in concentration, Charlie transfigured the clothes while she turned slowly, arms outstretched, so he could see where adjustments needed to be made. The jeans, in particular, required multiple alterations. "The length is fine," she told him. "Tighten the waistband a bit, would you? Um, a little too tight! That's better. More snug in the hips, see how they're still too baggy?" Charlie cautiously adapted the fit to Nadia's specifications, growing more and more red-faced the whole while. "Hey, could you flare the legs just a bit more?" she demanded. "A little more... more... ah, that's perfect."

_Merlin's beard, they're just jeans_, Charlie thought, becoming exasperated. _She's awfully picky._

Nadia stifled a grin. "Any chance you could darken the color?" she asked, all innocence. "The stone-washed look is so out of date."

His jaw dropped. "You—I—you're not—" Charlie sputtered incoherently.

Unable to keep a straight face any longer, Nadia doubled over laughing. He stared at her, confused. "I'm sorry," she finally managed to gasp. "If you could have seen your face... You were trying so hard to be patient, weren't you?"

"You were taking the mickey out of me all along." Charlie relaxed and smiled ruefully.

"I was. I'm sorry," she said, still giggling. "You were just so uncomfortable with the job of dressmaker! I couldn't resist teasing you."

"All right, no more stalling," he told her, trying and failing to look severe. He summoned a red leather quaffle and pointed to the far end of the clearing, where a single quidditch goal had suddenly appeared. A second goal ring now stood behind them. "Ladies first," he said gallantly, tossing her the ball. She caught it and took off, immediately throwing hard toward the goal ring. Charlie made no attempt to stop her from scoring. _Not bad, _he thought. _She can throw... _Nadia made a brief, abrupt motion, then shook her head in disgust and aimed her broom toward the ground. He realized she'd been reaching for her wand, to summon the quaffle back to her hand. Since it was charmed to drift slowly when dropped, resisting the natural pull of gravity, she was still able to catch it before it touched the ground.

"Okay, we'll consider that a practice shot," Nadia called. She met him in the middle of the pitch and tossed the quaffle high. Charlie tipped the end of his broomstick up, shooting skyward and batting the ball toward his own goal hoop. "Score one for you, Weasley." Now it was a race to get to the quaffle as it drifted toward the ground. Nadia accelerated, leaning low over her broomstick, fingers outstretched. Charlie grinned as she beat him to the ball by a fraction of a second. He'd loaned her the Nimbus on purpose, knowing that its superior speed and handling would help to even the contest. Now she was veering off to one side, trying to get more distance between them so she could score again. Charlie urged his Comet to greater speed, crowding her. They circled the pitch knee to knee, each pushing and angling for position. "Watch it," she complained.

"I thought you said you were a Beater," he teased. "Not afraid to play rough, are you?"

"How's this for rough?" With a grunt, she pushed hard into his ribs with her shoulder. In the moment it took him to recover, she broke away and threw for the goal hoop. She missed and they raced for the ball again.

The pick-up game went on for another half an hour, reminding Charlie more and more of Quidditch with his brothers. _Especially the fouls._ Laughing, he finally called a halt when Nadia grabbed the tail of his broom to prevent him from scoring another goal. "That's enough, Smith! That's the most blatant case of blagging I've ever seen!" They floated in mid-air, circling one another.

"I had to resort to cheating," she replied, grinning unrepentantly. "I was totally outmatched. You're really good! No, don't be so modest," she chided when he shook his head. "You really are good. I can't believe you're out here in the middle of frozen nowhere, instead of playing professionally. Don't any of the British teams recruit from Hogwarts?"

"Yeah, they do. I played professional Quidditch for one season, right out of school," Charlie admitted.

"The Falmouth Falcons, right?"

He blinked. "How did you know?"

Nadia smiled and indicated the falcon's head crest on the faded grey sweatshirt he'd loaned her. Warmed by exertion, they'd both thrown off their heavy coats as the game progressed. Charlie summoned both jackets and tossed Nadia hers as the frigid temperature made itself felt once again. "So what happened to end your career?" she asked sympathetically. "An injury?"

"No. It just... didn't work out."

Nadia looked baffled. "How so?"

It was a subject Charlie usually avoided. _Professional Quidditch player. Every little boy's dream... _He struggled to find the words to explain. "It wasn't the sport itself. I loved playing at that level—the team camaraderie, the physical and mental challenge... and the money, of course." He chuckled. "The money was incredible. My family isn't exactly well-off. I was so proud when I brought home my first paycheck."_ Eighteen years old, and I was earning more than my Dad did, after twenty years working for the Ministry._

"And then?" she prompted, gently.

Charlie spread his hands helplessly. He'd never been able to explain his abrupt departure from his dream career adequately. Not to his friends, not to his older brother Bill, not even to his Mum. Only his Dad had seemed to understand. "It was just too much," he began. "Too much, too quick. The crowds of kids wanting your autograph, people recognizing you in the street. The parties after every win," he told her, picking up speed. "And the women! You meet all these women. Beautiful women, and they're hanging on your every word, giving you their floo address so you can call them."

"Broomstick Bunnies," Nadia said with contempt.

Charlie shrugged. He'd heard the epithet before. "They weren't all like that. Some of them were really nice girls. It was just too much," he repeated doggedly. "I was too young to deal with all of it. Did you ever get in a situation where... I don't know. Where you were just in over your head?"

"Yeah. That I can understand." She drifted closer, patted his arm. "Wasn't it hard for you, though? The money! I wouldn't be able to walk away from that," she said wistfully.

"Ah, money isn't everything."

"So says the hermit! You live in a cave," she pointed out. "This isn't exactly a high-rent district."

"The hardest part was telling my parents I'd quit the team. I was so afraid they'd be disappointed in me." The words tumbled out, seemingly of their own accord. Disgruntled, Charlie put an end to the topic, banishing the Quidditch goals and swooping back to the clearing in front of his cave. "It's getting dark," he called back brusquely. "Time for me to check on my dragons." _I just met this girl―I don't even know her real name! _For some reason, though, he'd felt comfortable talking with her.

Nadia landed beside him and watched as he pressed the stone protrusion that activated the hidden door. "So, the windows inside are an illusion?"

"The windows are real." He waved a hand at the cliff face, grateful that she'd picked up on his desire to change the subject to something less personal. "The solid rock you see here is the illusion."

She rolled her eyes. "Weasley, you're the only hermit I know who has a cave with a view."

"Admit it. I'm the _only_ hermit you know."


	5. Twilight

"So you've got six months worth of food in this niche?" Nadia was examining the particulars of Charlie's kitchen with interest while he prepared dinner.

Charlie concentrated on the spaghetti sauce streaming from the tip of his wand into the saucepan simmering on the little stove. "Uh-huh. Supplies come up in the fall, before the bad weather sets in. Preservative spells keep everything fresh."

"Sort of like a refrigerator."

Nadia's tone was just a shade too casual and he glanced over, giving her his full attention. "Refrigerator... Muggle contraption that keeps things cold, am I right?"

"Yeah. My father was a Muggle," she said with a hint of a challenge in her voice.

Charlie thought he could understand why, although as a pure-blood, he'd never really had to face that kind of prejudice. "My Dad would love the chance to talk to you, then," he told her, smiling. "Muggle inventions absolutely fascinate him." She relaxed and smiled back. Charlie hastily turned back to the pot of sauce. He'd been feeling so comfortable with her while they were knocking the quaffle around, before the subject had turned to his short-lived Quidditch career. _Then I had to go and act like a git_, he thought critically. Nadia had seemed to take the minor incident in stride, though, and he'd made the suggestion that they eat dinner before he went out on his evening rounds. The relaxed atmosphere hadn't fully returned, however. As the early winter darkness fell, Nadia's tension grew more and more obvious, forming an unwelcome third presence in the room. _Well, someone did try to murder her just last night,_ he reminded himself. _No wonder she's a little jumpy._

"Doesn't it bother you, not having any curtains?" She was looking out the big picture window with something like apprehension. Outside the cave, the deepening snow cast back the cold light of the stars. Fat white flakes spun and swirled in the wind.

"Doesn't bother me at all." Now it was Charlie's voice carefully feigning nonchalance. "It's not as though anyone can see in." He set two heaping plates of spaghetti Bolognese on the table and Nadia joined him, pulling out one of the mismatched wooden chairs. "Can I convince you to come with me when I check on the dragons? You don't have to visit Honey," he added quickly, "but you could meet Trixibelle. The female Romanian Longhorn. She has a nice, sweet disposition."

"_Sweet._ You really believe that, don't you?" She reached across the little table and patted his hand. "I think you're sweet, Charlie." The log burning in the fireplace settled with a pop and a flurry of sparks, and Nadia startled, eyes wide. A moment later she collected herself with a nervous little laugh. "Do you remember the dragon that buzzed Broadstairs Beach?"

"Back in 1980," Charlie said eagerly. Then a sudden realization caused the blood to rush to his face yet again. "Oh, I'm so sorry! You were there, weren't you ?" he stammered. "That's where your fear of dragons comes from."

"Um, no, I wasn't on the beach. Nowhere near it." Nadia smiled crookedly. "Some crazy eyewitness managed to take a photograph before running for cover. The _Daily Prophet_ ran it on the front page."

"A Welsh Green in full flight, spouting flames." Charlie remembered it vividly. "I saved that clipping—cut it out and spellotaped it up on my bedroom wall. It hung there for years."

Her laugh was genuine this time. "You're crazy. The same picture gave me nightmares for years. Forget about beachside holidays for my family!" Charlie chuckled. "I suppose you think I'm the crazy one, huh?" she said ruefully. "Being so terrified of a little newspaper article."

"No, not crazy. I reckon your reaction was more appropriate, for a little kid. Funny, that we were both influenced so much by the same article," he mused. "Small world." A faint sound that might have been the rising wind interrupted him. "That sounded like Pixie." He pushed back his chair. "I'll be back in a little while."

Nadia was out of her seat just as quickly. She caught his arm. "Come on, Charlie. It's practically a blizzard out there. They're wild animals—they can take care of themselves for one night, can't they?"

"You're safe here, Nadia. This will only take a min—" Her hand, soft and small and so very, very warm, reached up and caressed his face, ending with one finger pressed against his lips, silencing his explanation.

"Shh. Please. I just don't want to be alone right now." Her lips pressed against his.

Charlie responded instinctively, wrapping her in his embrace as the kiss deepened. He ran one hand down her back, rough, callused fingers snagging in the fine silk of her hair. She sighed and pressed closer, her own nimble fingers unfastening the buttons of his flannel shirt. Her touch against the bare skin of his chest burned like dragon fire. An answering fire was kindled inside him... _Too much. Too fast._ Charlie broke off the kiss, stepped away...

——————

...and stepped back in time. He was eighteen again, a boy who thought he was a man, furious with his Mum for expecting him to obey the same curfew as Percy. Turning his back on her angry shouts, her accusations. Stalking out of the house, down the rutted dirt drive to the ramshackle little barn, tiny velvet box burning a hole in his pocket. Charlie slammed his fist down on the bonnet of the derelict Ford Anglia his father kept parked in the shed. He didn't have to take this! He wasn't going to take it, not anymore. "Sod it all, anyway!" He could move in with one of his mates from the Falcons. Maybe he could get an advance on his pay, rent a flat of his own... ask Petra to move in with him. That was it, yes! Why should they wait? Mum had no right to treat him like he was an infant—

"All right, Charlie?" The voice, warm and calm and slightly muffled, startled the boy out of his mostly-silent rant. Belatedly, he noticed his Dad's legs protruding from under the automobile. With a grunt, Arthur Weasley appeared, lying on a mechanic's dolly, a smear of black engine grease across his nose. "Give us a hand up, would you, son?" Charlie complied, shame-faced. "Thanks. Glad to see you got home all right. Your Mum was a bit worried."

"I don't see why. All she had to do was look at the clock. She didn't have to work herself into a lather because I was out with my mates."

"She can't help herself. There's a fair bit of leeway between 'mortal peril' and 'home', Charlie." The elder Weasley paused, but Charlie didn't answer. "So, did you and Petra have a nice time on your date?" his Dad asked casually.

"Yeah, it was all right." The boy realized his mistake before he'd finished the sentence. Faced with his Mum's disapproval, he'd lied and told her that he'd been out with friends from the Quidditch team. Male friends. He could feel himself blushing and turned away, pretending great interest in a tray of blown fuses on the workbench nearby. "Mum hates Petra," he said, loathing the whine that had crept into his voice, but unable to help himself, "and for no reason. They've never even met."

His father's hand gripped his shoulder, a gentle, loving gesture. "They haven't met because you haven't brought Petra home to meet us, Charlie."

The unasked question hung in the air between them. _Why haven't you brought her home yet? _The answer, also unspoken, made Charlie's ears burn even redder. The loving weight of his Dad's hand on his shoulder was suddenly unbearable. He stepped away. "Fine, I'll bring her home to meet you." He fumbled the ring box from his pocket... the extravagant ring he'd spent his entire month's salary to buy. "Right after she agrees to marry me."

Now his Dad's attention was suddenly absorbed by the fuse collection. His voice remained calm and quiet when he finally spoke again. "You only met her three weeks ago."

"I love her, Dad." The boy waited for an angry denial, but unlike his Mum, his Dad didn't scoff. Doubt grew in the quiet space between them. To silence it, he shouted at his Dad. "I love her. _And she loves me!_"

"Then I'm happy for you, son. And your Mum will be too, in time." Arthur Weasley's smile was patient and warm, if a little sad. "Time, that's the key. If it's real, Charlie, it doesn't have to be rushed. Remember that. If Petra is the right girl for you, she'll be willing to wait until you're both ready. You don't have to rush."

——————

_If it's real, it doesn't have to be rushed._ His parents had been right, of course. They almost always were, it turned out. Charlie turned back to Nadia, trying to compose himself, to think of something tactful to say. Before he could begin to frame a sentence in his mind, the shrill cry of an enraged dragon rolled down the mountain, unmistakable. "Honey! Something's happened!" For just a moment he stood frozen, and in that moment he read the truth in Nadia's eyes. She already knew what had happened. _She's been a part of it all along._ Then the moment passed and he could move again. With a cry that nearly matched the dragon's, Charlie yanked his broom off the rack and slammed out the door.


	6. Anger Management

Charlie was astride the broom almost before he'd cleared the door. Honey's screams echoed off the cliffs. Fire lit up the night, tinting the snow apricot. In her fury, she'd broken free of the spells confining her to the paddock and was spiraling skyward. _No reasoning with her at the moment... _Charlie decided to let her go. He turned the Nimbus and guided it between the pillars and through the entrance of Honey's cave. The eggs—all ten of them— were gone. A circular patch on the floor, darker than the surrounding stone, caught his eye. "_Lumos !"_ The white light from the tip of his wand revealed a hole, almost perfectly round. _Not just a hole._ A tunnel, smooth-sided, descending through the bedrock. Suddenly, the twin stone pillars outside the cave gained new significance. Peering into the tunnel, Charlie felt the bile rise in his throat. _This is how they got past Honey's flames. Too small for even Nadia to wriggle through. A child could manage it, though... or more likely, a Goblin. _

Summoning the Nimbus back to his hand, Charlie left the cave behind and made a quick check on the other dragons in his charge. They were pacing restlessly, but were unharmed. _Of course. The thieves were only after the eggs._ Honey's cries echoed faintly in the distance, heading north. On the mountainside, silence reigned. _By now, the thieves are long gone. All but the one._ He turned the broom around and shot back down the cliff.

Nadia was still standing where he'd left her, beside the fireplace. She cringed as he tossed the broom aside and faced her, wand leveled at her throat. "Charlie, please. I—"

He jerked his head toward a chair. "Sit down." Wide-eyed, she complied. "Your boyfriend left you behind. No honor among thieves, I reckon."

"It's not like that ! I wasn't in on it—you have to believe me !" Strong, thin cords shot from Charlie's wand, binding her to the chair. Nadia sat rigidly, her eyes locked on his. "Please. Let me explain."

"You can 'explain' to the aurors," Charlie told her coldly. He took several deep breaths, trying to calm himself.

Nadia stared at him apprehensively. "What are you going to do ?"

"I'm going to warn the other keepers. You'd better hope and pray that none of the other nesting mothers' eggs were taken." There was a loud pop as he apparated.

———―——

Less than an hour later, the dying embers in Charlie's fireplace flared to life with green flames. A slight figure stepped across the hearth, wand at the ready, not needing to stoop to clear the mantelpiece. The low-burning candles would have revealed her as a middle-aged witch dressed in heavy winter woolens, had anyone been in the cave to see. Blue eyes, bright in her weathered brown face, darted around the little room, taking in the overturned chair and tangle of cords, the empty space on the broom rack. She sighed and pocketed her wand as the flames rose once more. "She's long gone, Charlie."

Charlie rushed to the door and slammed it open. A trail of diminutive boot prints, half-filled with snow, extended several yards from the door, then disappeared. Charlie blurted a few words his Mum would not have approved of. "Sorry, Smitty," he said reflexively.

The older woman patted his arm fondly. "Heard 'em all before, Charlie, before you were even born. Let's go check on Honey."

It was obvious even before they reached the paddock that the Hungarian Horntail hadn't returned. Charlie conjured up a length of string and quickly wove a cat's cradle between his fingers, suspending his wand in the center of it. It spun rapidly, then hovered to a stop. "She's about forty miles away, still heading north."

Smitty hadn't stood idle while he plotted the dragon's course. She'd pulled an egg carton from her pocket and selected several miniature eggs the color of cement, placing them gently in the center of the nest. "_Engorgio."_ The eggs grew to about a foot in diameter, perfect replicas of real Horntail eggs. "She may return on her own. If she does, these nest eggs ought to satisfy her."

"When are the aurors going to get here ? Won't they need to examine the, um, scene of the crime ?"

"They aren't sending anyone, Charlie," Smitty said gently. She waved her lighted wand at the smooth stone tunnel, the pair of stone pillars. "These weren't small-time thieves. The wards protecting the Preserve weren't damaged; they managed to slip through, somehow. And slip right back out again. These were professionals. The local aurors haven't a chance of tracking them down."

"But what about the Wizangamot ?" Charlie stared at the Head Dragon Keeper, stunned. "The Horntail is a protected species..." he insisted.

"They'll investigate," Smitty said without much conviction. "Question those suspected Dark wizards who might have use for dragon's eggs, warn the Muggle customs agents to be on the lookout... They might be able to intercept some of the eggs leaving Eastern Europe."

"In other words, too little, too late !"

"I'm sorry, kid. International law enforcement's resources are just stretched too thin right now." She barked a short laugh. "They always are. Endangered dragon species don't rate a high priority." She pulled him to her in a one-armed hug. "We've got a little money in the budget. I'm going to call in some favors, get some more keepers up here for the winter. We'll put a twenty-four hour guard on the nesting mothers. It's not going to happen again, Charlie. Come on, no sense standing out here 'til we get frostbite." Charlie allowed her to lead him back down the mountain path to his cave. He watched numbly as Smitty placed a full tin of floo powder on his mantel without comment. "If Honey isn't back by morning, I take it you'll go after her ?"

"Yeah. I—I'll let you know."

Smitty nodded. "Tell Istvan, too. He'll take care of the others while you're gone." Green sparks flew up the carved stone chimney as she threw floo powder onto the embers. "You take care now, kid. Try and get some sleep."

"Yeah. I will." Charlie could feel tears of frustration prickling at his eyelids as Smitty whirled away through the floo. Suddenly, the little cave seemed stifling, the small space insufficient to contain the anger and betrayal he was feeling. Grabbing a coat, he slammed through the door for the third time that evening. In Honey's paddock he summoned torches, then aimed a Reductor Curse at the nearest pillar, scattering chips of stone, casting the spell again and again until the hated stone monoliths had been reduced to rubble. The destruction didn't make Charlie feel any better. After a moment's thought he conjured a shovel and tucked his wand into his pocket. Charlie attacked the pile of rubble, frantically shoveling stone chips into the cave to plug the hole. The torches had burned low before the physical labor finally had the desired effect, tiring him to the point where the helpless rage no longer burned in his veins. Leaving the shovel beside the entrance to the cave, Charlie left the half-filled hole and trudged back down the mountain to his bed.

———―——

He woke in the wrinkled clothes he'd worn the day before, eyes scratchy from lack of sleep and unshed tears. Charlie knew even before he cast the location spell that Honey had not come back. He sighed, knuckling the sand from his eyes. _No sense wasting daylight. _ As he lowered his hands, he realized something was out of place, or rather, in place where he hadn't expected to see it again. The Nimbus 2000 hung between the Comet and the Silver Arrow on the broom rack. Charlie crossed the room, ran a finger down the Nimbus' polished handle. _What the—?_ He whirled as a voice he hadn't expected to hear again spoke from the shadows at the back of the cave.

"Will you please listen to me now ?"

———―——

Author's notes: Thanks to all who took the time to read and review during this busy time of year: cadmium Rozella08, weselan, Kail Ceannai, Courtney Anne, and Jedi Blu, Lady At Large.

**To Kail Ceannai: ** I read your bio. What's this about writing fan fiction but not posting it ?


	7. Damsel in Debt

"Will you please listen to me now ?"

Charlie gaped at the woman standing in his bathroom doorway. Dimly, he supposed he should draw his wand and... _And what? Hex her? Tie her up again? _He let his hands drop to his sides. "H-how did you... Where... Why?"

"There's a lot of space back there." Nadia gestured behind her. "I hid."

"But... My broom!" Charlie felt as though his brain were permanently stalled. He struggled to catch up. "You got free and flew away. I saw the tracks," he insisted.

"I ran out the door... and then flew right back in," she replied with the ghost of a smile.

Fresh anger burned. "You knew your friends would be back for the eggs. You were in on it all along—your job was to provide the distraction." _And I fell for it._

"No! I thought—hoped—that they'd given up. There weren't any eggs in the nest, and without me to steal them... All right," she admitted softly. "I was in on it, at the start. But not after you saved me! Hell, not after Stephan chained me to those pillars!" Her voice rose, strident, as he drew his wand. "Do you honestly believe that I'd go along with _that_?"

"I don't know what to believe." He glared at her, sighting down his wand. She squared her shoulders and stared back defiantly. Finally Charlie lowered his wand again. He slumped tiredly into a chair. "Keep talking."

"I got involved with Stephan three years ago, in Germany. I was working in a little wizarding shop in Heidelberg. The owner did a little business under the counter—"

"Fenced stolen goods, you mean."

Nadia ignored his comment. "Stephan used to come in every month or so," she went on. "We started dating. He treated me like a princess, always had gold to spare. Pretty soon, I quit my job and moved in with him." She shrugged. "Things were great, for a while."

"I don't care about your love life. I'm still waiting for an explanation for what you did last night," Charlie told her stonily.

"I'm trying to explain. Please..." When he didn't relent, she went on with a sigh. "Fine. I left Stephan three months ago and moved back to Great Britain. Five days ago I came home from work and he was waiting in my flat. He said that he had a job that required my, um, skills. He promised to leave me alone, once I helped him just this one last time. What choice did I have?" Charlie just crossed his arms and waited. She sighed again. "Stephan wouldn't give me any advance details about the job. When I found out I'd be going into the nest of a live dragon, well... I flipped out. Nothing short of _Imperius_ was going to get me into that cave. And then when the dragon hadn't even laid the eggs yet..." She snorted. "You saw how pleased Stephan was about that." Nadia's voice lost the edge of sarcasm, became pleading. "Please believe me, Charlie. I'm through with that life. I hoped they would give up, but I was afraid that they'd come back and you'd get hurt."

"You could have warned me." Charlie clenched his fists. _I knew not to trust her. Merlin, I'm an idiot! A sucker for a pretty face and a sad story._

"Look, the dragon's okay. She'll come back, right ? She can lay more eggs—"

"She's not a bloody chicken!" Nadia cringed as Charlie leaped to his feet. _She expects me to hit her_, he realized. He wasn't sure whether to feel ashamed for having frightened her, or annoyed that she would believe him capable of striking a defenseless woman. With an effort, he lowered his voice. "The Hungarian Horntail is an endangered species. There are only about two dozen left. And no, Honey can't just lay more eggs—it's not that easy. Of the surviving Horntails, many are sterile. Even with fertility charms cast on both the male and the female, most of the eggs fail to be viable." Charlie sighed. In spite of the odds, he'd had high hopes for Honey's eggs. "That's something you and your friends couldn't possibly understand," he accused. "The eggs don't mean anything more to you than a source of gold. You have no idea of their real value. No idea at all."

"I'm sorry. I wish I could help you get them back."

Charlie glared at Nadia suspiciously. "Why would you want to help me? For that matter, why didn't you get away while you had the chance?"

She sat down abruptly in one of the chairs. "Wizard's debt, I guess. I do owe you my life."

"Wizard's debt," Charlie snorted. "I thought that only applied to those who had a conscience."

"Mine's a little rusty, I admit." Her expression was wry. "But I didn't make it one hundred yards down the mountain before something made me turn back."

"Ah, so you _were_ going to steal my broom!" Two spots of crimson bloomed on Nadia's cheeks. Charlie's eyes widened. _She's blushing! Maybe she does have a conscience after all..._

"I was... um, I was going to send it back to you, once I was done with it."

She looked so miserable, slumped in his chair with her hands between her knees. He couldn't help it; he started to chuckle. It was nice to see _her_ blushing for a change. "Do you have any idea what he..." Charlie's voice trailed off. No way was he going to refer to Stephan by name. He'd already chosen an epithet for the criminal; one he wouldn't repeat in front of a lady. _Even if the 'lady' in question is a criminal herself._ He gathered his thoughts. "Could you really help me find the eggs?"

She squirmed, looking uncomfortable. "Well, yeah... I mean, I know most of the um, people Stephan does business with. Yeah, I could probably help you find at least some of the eggs. But what's the use? Won't they have already... you know... been away from their mother for too long?"

"They just need to be kept warm," Charlie said eagerly. "Normally, the mother breathes fire on them, but not constantly. An _incendio _spell once or twice a day would keep them viable." He frowned. "Would your boyfriend know enough to take proper care of them?" _He must. The eggs would be worth much more that way. _

"He had a book," Nadia said, "Dragon Breeding for Pleasure and Profit. And he's not my boyfriend," she added petulantly.

Charlie let out the breath he'd been holding. His heart was racing. _She _can _help me. We will get the eggs back._

"When I saw that title, I demanded some answers," Nadia went on. Her voice grew husky. "We argued... again. It didn't go well." She shuddered, then regained control and looked straight at Charlie. "We can get the eggs back. Do you trust me?"

"I don't reckon I've any choice." Suddenly, he grinned. "First things first, though. We have to get Honey back." He was still angry enough with her that he didn't feel guilty when Nadia's face paled. _Well, not very guilty._

"W-w-..." She took a deep breath and tried again. "_We_ have to get Honey back? Um, how about if I just wait here? I'm sure I'd only get in your way."

"Probably so." He turned away from her and began rummaging in a cupboard, whistling cheerily to himself.

"Charlie, this is a really bad idea. I don't have the slightest idea how to go about capturing a dragon."

"'S all right. You just follow my lead. You'll be fine." He tossed Nadia a knapsack. "Pack us some food, would you? Enough for oh, two or three days."

"You're insane!" Nadia's voice became strident again. "I hate dragons. And I'm sure the dragon feels the same way about me! She'll fry me to a crisp!"

Charlie poked his head out of the cupboard and gave her a reassuring smile. "Honey would never fry you. Where did I put that sleeping bag?" He resumed his search. Nadia shuddered again at his next, slightly muffled words. "Dragon fire is a _dry _heat. No frying. Roasting, now, that's a distinct possibility." He emerged again and winked at her as he flourished his wand. "I give up. _Accio sleeping bag!_"

Nadia ducked as the sleeping bag flew past her. She glared at Charlie. "I don't suppose there's any way you're going to let me back out of this crazy expedition, is there ?"

"I'm not the one forcing you to tag along." Nadia opened her mouth to argue, then shut it abruptly. Charlie nodded. "Uh-huh. Wizard's debt." He turned away quickly, stifling a laugh at the look on her face. A moment later he heard her muttering in the kitchen alcove as she packed their provisions.

——————

Author's notes: Thank you so much for reading and special thanks to Courtney Anne, Kail Ceannai, Jedi Blu, Lady At Large, Aly DragonChild, duj, WOC, druggo-frog, and invisible2u. Your comments and encouragement mean a lot to me. Thanks for the holiday wishes, too—hope you all have a happy 2005.

I'm experimenting a bit with this story, trying to loosen up a little and go with a plot that is admittedly more far-fetched than I'd normally permit. Criticism, as always, is welcomed.

**To druggo-frog:** Thanks, and hopefully the plot, such as it is, is a little more clear now.

**To all, especially WOC: ** I want Charlie to sound casual, but not American—yikes! If you can give me specific examples of problems, I'll gladly make changes. Thanks!

**To Aly DragonChild: ** You figured out who Smitty was, though. She was introduced in an earlier chapter, but since it's been months between updates, you're bound to forget a few details. I don't always like to spell everything out, anyway. Still trying to catch those pesky punctuation marks!

**To Kail Ceannai: ** I always have an ending, but getting there is always a far more convoluted process than I first expect. _Grins._


	8. Charlie in Distress

After packing, breakfast, and a hasty consultation with Istvan via the floo (during which Nadia waited out of sight), they were ready to set out in pursuit of Honey. Charlie felt a grudging admiration for his reluctant companion; once she'd committed to their 'crazy expedition', she set to work helping him prepare without any further complaints or arguments. "Take the Silver Arrow," he told her at the doorway to the cave.

"That relic ? You're crazy. I'll fly the Comet, thanks."

_So much for no arguments._ "Take the Silver Arrow," he insisted. "The Comet's seen better days."

"Yeah, and this thing's an antique. I'll take my chances with the Comet."

"Suit yourself." Charlie cast a locking spell on the cave door, then mounted his Nimbus 2000 and hovered casually twenty feet above ground. Nadia watched as he wove the cat's cradle of string, looping it over the broom handle. His wand, suspended in the cradle, spun and then came to a stop. "She's about eighty miles away," he said, squinting at the green, vaporous compass headings and numerical data that only he could see. "We'll circle around to the northeast; there's a Longhorn and a couple of Swedish Short-Snouts that have their territories due north. I'd rather avoid them right now."

She rolled her eyes. "Me too."

They flew steadily through flurries of snow, following Charlie's dragon locater spell. "I want to get Honey back by tomorrow or the next day at the latest," he explained to Nadia. "It doesn't take long for a dragon to revert to the wild."

"She isn't going to go crazy and attack a village or, or something, is she?" Nadia's eyes were wide. Her unspoken thought was plain. _She's not going to attack _us_, is she?_

"Fortunately, there aren't many villages up here in the mountains. I'm mainly worried that she'll refuse to sit if she's away from the nest for too long. If we do manage to get any of Honey's eggs back, I don't want her to reject them. I suppose Trixibelle could foster them, if it came down to that," he mused out loud. "She's always been a good sitter."

Nadia raised an eyebrow. "It must be... interesting. Having a bunch of baby dragons running around."

"I wish. Trixi would make a great mother, but so far none of her eggs have ever hatched."

"Oh, yeah, you said that a lot of the dragons are infertile. Why is that?"

"Pollution, mainly." Mindful of Nadia's background, Charlie chose his next words with care. "Not to put all the blame on Muggles, but there are a lot more of them than there are wizards... and when the governments of their countries don't care about protecting the environment..."

"Yeah, the old communist regimes made a mess of things in this part of the world, didn't they?"

Charlie nodded, glad that Nadia had understood. He couldn't help but feel comfortable around her; she really was easy to talk to. He shook his head, ending that train of thought. _Remember what happened just last night. She might seem remorseful, but twenty-four hours is hardly long enough for a criminal to reform. _They flew on, seeing only one other sign of life in the winter landscape, a male Romanian Longhorn circling far to the west. It ignored the two humans, but Charlie noticed that Nadia flew very close to him for several miles after the dark green dragon had faded from view. By late afternoon, though, she'd fallen behind. Charlie circled around and pulled his broom up beside hers. "Looks like the ol' Comet is starting to lose its acceleration," he remarked. _Not to mention its Cushioning Charm._

She gave him a smile that was more of a grimace. "It's fine. I was just enjoying the scenery. The mountains are really spectacular." Putting on a burst of speed, she called back, "Come on, do you want to find this dragon or not?"

He caught up and gestured toward a low ridge off to the right, the dark crags lit up by the setting sun. "It's going to be too dark to fly soon, and we're both tired." He certainly hadn't slept well, the night before. He thought of Nadia, hiding in a crevice at the back of his cave and suppressed a shiver. _I reckon she didn't have a very restful night, either. _"It's time to make camp," he told her, "come on." They found a sheltered spot below a ledge of rock. Soon, a cheery fire was burning and Charlie's little tent had set itself up close by. "Sorry, it's nothing special," he apologized. "Just a sleeping space and a small bathroom."

This time Nadia's smile was sincere. "A bathroom! Are you kidding? That's great! My dad tried to take us camping once when I was little, with Muggle camping gear, of course. My mother couldn't believe it when she found out that there weren't any bathroom facilities included. She nearly hexed the old man into next week."

Later, after they'd both washed up and had something to eat, they sat by the campfire. The quiet of the mountains was absolute, undisturbed save for the crackling of the fire. Unobserved, Charlie watched the woman sitting beside him, her profile lit by the glowing embers. It was so peaceful, and so right, somehow, being here with her. He thought back to the night before, when she'd kissed him. _It meant nothing to her,_ he reminded himself. _And it meant nothing to me._ Abruptly, he stood up, startling Nadia out of whatever thoughts of her own she'd been lost in. "Early start tomorrow," he said brusquely. "We'd better turn in for the night." Drawing his wand, he cast anti-theft charms on both brooms where they'd left them leaning against the side of the tent, making no attempt to hide his actions from Nadia. He crawled inside and got into his sleeping bag, turning to face the canvas wall. A few minutes later, he heard Nadia enter and snuggle into her own sleeping bag, without a word to him. Charlie supposed he'd hurt her feelings. _I don't care, _he told himself defiantly. _I'm not going to make the mistake of trusting her again. _

———————

The smell of coffee woke Charlie the next morning. Nadia was already awake and had managed to stir up the campfire enough to boil a pot of water. "You'll have to cook breakfast," she told him cheerfully. "You're looking at the limit of my wandless cooking skills."

"Thank you. Look, I'm sorry about last night—"

Nadia cut him off. "Don't be. I understand. I haven't given you much reason to trust me. Anyway," she added, "I've done some thinking. I'm going to leave Europe as soon as we get those eggs back, maybe go back to Ecuador... make a fresh start."

He felt a brief, irrational pang of disappointment, quickly suppressed. _Why? I barely know her. As disruptive as she's been, it will be a relief to have her out of my life._

Soon, they'd broken camp and were on their way again. Charlie's good spirits returned when he cast the locater spell; Honey was only about twenty-five miles away, and appeared to be circling. "She's calming down," he told Nadia. "With any luck, we won't have to camp out tonight."

"Great. Just great." Instead of being cheered by the news, she seemed worried, even fearful.

_Of course, _Charlie realized. _She's about to come face to face with her worst nightmare...for the second time. _ He turned back to smile reassuringly at her. But Nadia's troubles were just beginning. The Comet was fading fast. _Stubborn witch,_ he thought, as she grimly did her best to keep up. Finally, after half an hour of trying to coax more speed out of the old broom, she was forced to land on a snow-covered slope. Charlie drifted to a halt beside her and hopped off his broom. He banished the Comet with a wave of his wand. _"Accio Silver Arrow!" _ It was hard not to say 'I told you so.' "Your new ride should arrive in just a minute or two," he grinned, slipping the wand back into its sling of twine on the front of his broom.

Nadia gave him a sour look. She opened her mouth to make a comment, but before she could get the words out, her eyes widened. She pointed a trembling finger over Charlie's shoulder. "We've got company."

He turned and saw a black speck on the horizon, rapidly getting larger. _Honey? _ _No,_ he realized as the black dragon grew closer. It didn't have the sinuous, lizardlike shape of a Horntail. "It's a Norwegian Ridgeback, a female, judging by the size." _Where is that Silver Arrow? It should be here by now. _ He took a quick glance around. There was an outcropping of rock some forty yards away. "Let's get under cover," he suggested, grabbing Nadia's hand. "Don't panic. With any luck, she'll pass us by."

It was rough going. They struggled, sinking knee-deep in the heavy, wet snow. Nadia lost her footing as snow from above slid down the slope; Charlie just managed to brace himself and hold on to her hand, keeping them both from sliding downhill. "Am I losing my mind," she panted as they stumbled toward the rocks, "or is someone laughing at us?"

"It's the Ridgeback. She's spotted us. Dragons communicate with one another telepathically," he explained hastily as they reached the dubious shelter of the outcrop of granite. "Some humans are receptive enough to tune in to it... you're picking up on her emotions."

"Lucky me," Nadia groaned. "We're going to die! At least we'll keep her amused for a few minutes."

"Him," Charlie corrected her as the huge black dragon landed, sending a slab of packed snow sledding downhill. "I know that dragon. Nadia, meet Norbert."

"Is he... friendly?" A gout of flame sprayed the rocks, raising a cloud of steam as a large patch of snow melted. Nadia screamed and covered her head with her arms. "I guess that answers my question!"

"He's got rather a strange sense of humor," Charlie said, risking a peek around the rocks. Norbert was having an even harder time keeping his footing on the slope than the two humans had. Charlie hesitated. _Should I try and summon the Arrow again? _ He made up his mind as Norbert slid fifty feet down the steep slope, dislodging another sheet of snow. "Come on," he ordered, slinging a leg over the handle of his broom, "while he's distracted. Climb on behind me." They took off, flying low. _If we can get to the cover of that ravine, we'll be safe. _

Norbert took to the air. Charlie could sense the dragon's excitement as he closed the space between them with powerful beats of his leathery black wings. It was all a game to the young dragon... a game that could end in death for the two humans. Flying on instinct, he dodged to the left. Norbert's flames passed them by, uncomfortably close. "Hang on!" He dodged again, sending the Nimbus into a barrel roll. The gout of liquid fire came even closer. He could feel Nadia's arms clutching around his waist, hard enough to make breathing difficult. Draconian mirth echoed in his mind as Norbert put on speed and drew even with them. Riding double, they couldn't match the dragon's speed or agility. "Take over," he shouted to Nadia. "I'm going to jump off...now!"

"You're crazy," she screamed as he dove off the broomstick and plowed into a snowbank. Flames passed just overhead, melting the snow, leaving Charlie lying in a puddle of slush. He raised his head and looked back over his shoulder in time to see Nadia steer the Nimbus into the mouth of the narrow ravine. He sensed frustration as Norbert gained altitude, circling above. He was too big to squeeze into the cleft between the rocks. Nadia was safe.

———————

The cold began to seep through his wet clothing. Charlie reached for his wand, swearing under his breath as his fingers came up empty. _Brilliant. I'm defenseless. I just hope Norbert has forgotten about me. _ The best course of action at the moment seemed to be to remain where he was, face-down in the snow. He burrowed deeper into the drift and waited. It wasn't easy to be patient. Soon he was shivering. Was that boredom he sensed from the dragon or was that just his own emotion? Cautiously, he raised his head to look. Norbert was still circling above the ravine. Charlie ducked back down and counted—slowly—to one hundred. When he dared another look, the dragon was once again a mere speck above, spiraling skyward. Charlie stood up and began to make his way across the slope toward the shelter of the ravine.

_The day just keeps getting better and better, _Charlie thought as he struggled in the drifts. The third snowslide took him almost fifteen feet down the slope. As he stumbled to his feet, he saw Nadia swooping toward him on the Nimbus. She was gesturing wildly. _What? _ He scanned the sky; there was no sign of Norbert or any other dragon that he could see. Charlie shrugged and took another dogged step forward. With a low rumble like thunder, the snow gave way beneath his feet. _Here we go again. _It took several seconds for him to realize that, this time, he was really in trouble. It felt as though the entire slope had given way, taking him with it. Snow filled his clothing, his eyes, his ears. He was choking on a mouthful of snow. He flailed, trying to fight his way to the surface, trying to fight the rising panic as all sense of direction was lost in the roaring tide of white. White faded to black as panic won out.

———————

Thank you to my very wonderful, faithful reviewers, invisible2u, Aly DragonChild, Courtney Anne, Kail Ceannai, and Kaori7395.

**To Kaori7395: ** I've had that problem too, not being able to open chapters. It's frustrating! As for Charlie's pet name for Stephan, I'm trying to do like J.K. Rowling does with Ron Weasley in the books. Although you know from context that Ron says a lot of bad words, they never actually show up in print. You'll get to meet Stephan later. Oh, and one more thing! I love Heidelberg, visited there once in 1988. I'd love to go back there someday.

**To Aly DragonChild: ** Charlie kind of runs hot and cold, 'cuz I have a hard time doing emotion. As for the Mary-Sue thing, let me know how you think she's turning out.


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